Spinning device



W. KELLER SPINNING DEVICE June 23, 1970 FIG. 1 Filed May 10. 1968 W 1 Mg United States Patent Office 3,516,119 Patented June23, 1970 33, Int.Cl. D01d 3/00 US. Cl. 18-8 6 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Thisinvention relates to a spinning apparatus for the manufacture ofsynthetic fibers and the like from molten synthetic polymers. Thespinning apparatus has an outlet for the molten synthetic material to bespun and a nozzle block operatively attached to the outlet. The nozzleblock comprises a cover plate, a filter casing, and a nozzle plate,which are secured together, respectively, by a securing means. Arotatable threaded annular sleeve means is seated and retained in arecess in the cover plate. A rotating means is provided in the nozzleblock for rotating the annular sleeve means which has threads on itsinner annular surface to thereby secure the nozzle block to the outletfor the molten synthetic material.

The present invention relates to a nozzle block for a spinning apparatusfor synthetic fibers or threads. More particularly, the presentinvention relates to a nozzle block which is made of spining nozzleplate, nozzle plate holder, filter casing and filter insets, which arestructurally united and in which the nozzle block has feed bore for thespinning fluid.

The invention has as its underlying object the rapid mounting anddismounting of nozzle blocks of every kind. The rapid mounting anddismounting of nozzle blocks are necessary in maintenance and cleaningoperations on the nozzles and on the filter inset. They are also ofimportance in the changing of the nozzles in a spinning apparatus toother and different nozzles.

It is a known practice in the art to group nozzle plate, filter andnozzle plate holders or filter casing together into a nozzle block whichis fastened by means of a screw threaded to the spinning apparatus.However, such a practice presumes that the entire nozzle block isturnable or rotatable for the purpose of mounting or assembly. Theturning of a nozzle block requires sufficient free working space aroundthe nozzle block for the employment of a tool to apply a considerabletorque needed for the turning of the great screw thread diameter.Moreover, such a construction is undesirable since the end position ofthe nozzle block and thus the angular position of the threads withrespect to the blast air direction are not predeterminable. In order toremedy these drawbacks it has been proposed to provide a bayonetfastening instead of the screw thread. In such proposed constructionafter the end position of the bayonet claws has been reached, axialcontact pressure and sealing forces are provided by several pressurescrews distributed over the circumference of the bayonet ring. Such anarrangement likewise results in a considerable space requirement and, inaddition, has the disadvantage that when the pressure screws or setscrews are unevenly tightened, the nozzle plate would be crookedly set,whereby a reliable sealing between nozzle block and spinning heat is nolonger assured.

It is also known to provide a nozzle block which is installed, togetherwith the spinning pump, into the spine ning apparatus through an openingat the top of the spinning apparatus. In such an embodiment, the sealbetween the lateral feed line and the nozzle block for the spinning meltis accomplished by lateral shifting of the nozzle block. Such aconstruction is not only expansive but also requires that the spaceabove the nozzle block be freely accessible. Consequently, such aspinning device is constructed with a very large width, which isincompatible with the requirement of accommodating an ever increasingnumber of nozzle blocks on thet smallest possible floor area.

It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide a noveland improved nozzle block for spinning apparatus of synthetic fibers.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a nozzle blockwhich avoids the disadvantages associated with the known prior artdevices.

Still further objects may be gathered from a reading of the followingdescription and claims.

In accordance with the invention, a nozzle block is provided wherein thefeed bore is surrounded by a threaded sleeve carried in the nozzleblock. The sleeve is attachable to the stationary part of the spinningapparatus by screwing and it is provided with a rotary means so that thesleeve can be rotated with respect to the nozzlev block.

The nozzle blocks of the present invention can be made in anextraordinarily space-saving manner. It requires accessibility to thespinning apparatus from one side only, preferably from below since thisspace must be in any case kept free for the spinning shaft. The spinningis accomplished without rotary movement of the nozzle block, so that aplurality of rectangular nozzle blocks can be arranged adjacent eachother to take up the least amount of space. The position of these nozzleblocks is also exactly predeterminable. Preferably, a rotary movement ofthe nozzle block is prevented or rendered impossible by a twist guard. Aserial arrangement of the nozzle blocks of the invention withoutinterspace is possible, particularly according to a further feature ofthe invention wherein the threaded sleeve is provided with a toothed rimwhich is in engagement with a pinion. The pinion has a drive shaft,housed in the nozzle block, with an end which is positioned to beaccessible from the underside of the nozzle block and is equipped toreceive a tool.

The nozzle block according to the invention can always be screwed intoposition in a perfectly straight manner since it has only a single,central clamping or fastening element in the form of the threadedsleeve.

Finally, the axial forces, which are necessary to obtain a sufficientsealing effect when the spinning melt is subjected to pressures up to300 atmospheres, can be easily provided in accordance with a furtherfeature of the invention wherein the toothed rim has a larger diameterthan the pinion, so that a force translation is present.

An example of the apparatus of the invention will be explained below infurther detail with the aid of FIGS. 1 and 2 wherein:

FIG. 1 shows a longitudinal section view through a nozzle block of thepresent invention; and

FIG. 2 shows a cross section through the nozzle block of FIG. 1 alongline A-A.

In FIG. 1, 1 is a spinning nozzle plate having spinning nozzles 2. Onlyone spinning nozzle is shown in the drawing for the purposes of clarityand simplicity. The spinning nozzle plate is pressed, by means of thescrews 3 against the filter casing 4 and secured to a cover plate 5.Filter casing 4 and cover plate 5 together form the socalled nozzleplate holder. The filter casing 4 contains a filter chamber 6, in whicha wire screen 8 is located. Wire screen 8 serves as a carrier of a loosefilter material such as, for example, sand. The wire screen 8 not onlyserves as a carrier for the loose filter material but also as a meansfor obtaining a uniform flow of the spinning fluid across the nozzleblock. The spinning fluid is supplied to the filter chamber through afeed bore 9. The cover plate 5 has recesses for housing an annularthreaded sleeve 10. A toothed rim 11, in engagement with a pinion 12,forms a part of the threaded sleeve and is located at the outercircumference thereof. A circular annular surface 13 serves as pressureor bearing support for the absorption of the axial forces of thethreaded sleeve, which by means of its inside thread 14 stands inengagement with a threaded connecting element 15 on the stationaryelement 16 of the spinning apparatus. The counter-support for thecircular annular surface 13 can consist of a Wearproof material whichcan be in the form of a bearing ring on the cover plate 5. The sealbetween the threaded connecting element 15 and the filter casing 4 isprovided by a packing ring 17.

The pinion 12 has a shaft 18 which is carried in the filter casing 4.The lower end 19 of shaft 18 is in the shape of a hexagon for engagementwith a tool. A pin 21 is secured to the stationary element 16, and it isseated in a bore 22 in the cover plate 5 to prevent any twisting of thenozzle block.

The manner of assembling the nozzle block according to the invention isas follows:

Before assembling the nozzle block of the invention, the threaded sleeve10 and the threaded connecting element 15 are out of engagement. Thenozzle block as a unit is pushed toward the stationary element 16 of thespinning apparatus until the first part of thread 14 is in touch withthread connecting element 15. The pinion 12 is then rotated through itsshaft 18 by means of a wrench or an electric screwer. The rotatingpinion carries the toothed rim 11 of the threaded sleeve in rotation toscrew the threaded sleeve onto the counterthread of element 15 and thustightens the nozzle block against the stationary element 16 of thespinning apparatus. This rotating motion is continued until the filtercasing 4 comes to bear on the sealing ring or washer 17 on the threadedconnecting element 15 with a sufficiently high sealing force. Such asealing force can be easily obtained, for example, by a torque wrench.

It is, of course, possible to place the inside thread on the stationaryelement 16 and the outside thread on the threaded sleeve 10. It is alsowithin the scope of the invention to replace the toothed rim and pinionby a pair of cooperating elements consisting of worm wheel and worm,bevel wheels or bellwheel pinion. Similarly, it is possible to deletepinion 12 and shaft 18 if, instead of the toothed rim 11, there areprovided holes for the insertion of a lever, and a recess in the nozzleblock which permits the swinging and reinsertion of the lever. However,the embodiment shown in the drawing represents the preferred formpossessing a maximum of advantages, especially with respect to itsminimum space requirement and shortest assembling times.

The invention has been described in detail with particular reference topreferred embodiments thereof, but it will be understood that variationsand modifications can be effected within the spirit and scope of theinvention as 4 v: I described hereinabove and as defined in the appendeclaims.

What is claimed is: I

1. In a spinning apparatus for the manufacture of synthetic fibers andthe like from molten synthetic polymers, in combination, a'nozzle blockand an outlet means for said molten synthetic polymers on said spinningapparatus; said outlet means having screw-type threads on its exteriorsurface for engagement with said nozzle block;

said nozzle block comprising a cover plate, a filter casing,

a nozzle plate, a rotatable threaded annular sleeve means, rotatingmeans in said nozzle block for engaging and rotating said annular sleevemeans, and a securingmeans; said annular sleeve means having screw-typethreads on its inner surface engaged with the threads on said outletmeans; said cover plate having a recess therein for housing andretaining said annular sleeve means but permitting rotation andthreading engagement of said annular sleeve means with said outletmeans; said nozzle block being assembled by securing said cover plate,filter casing and nozzle plate, respectively, together with saidsecuring means after said annular sleeve means and rotating means havebeen placed in their positions within said nozzle block; said assemblednozzle block being attached to said outlet means by rotating saidannular sleeve means to cause the block to be drawn into tightengagement with the outlet means.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising a twist preventing meansconnected to said nozzle block and a stationary portion of saidapparatus to prevent relative twisting movement between said nozzleblock and said stationary portions.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said annular sleeve means having atoothed rim on its exterior surface, said rotating means being a pinionmounted on a shaft extending externally of said nozzle block, saidpinion being in engagement with said toothed rim, the external end ofsaid shaft being shaped to receive a tool for the rotation of saidpinion.

4. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein said external end of said shaftbeing located at a point below said nozzle block in the apparatus.

5. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein said toothed rim having a diameterlarger than that of said pinion.

6. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein said annular sleeve means having abearing surface for hearing against the retaining portion of said coverplate.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,792,122 5/1957 Munch et al18--8 X 3,461,493 8/1969 Lassman 18-8 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,406,347 6/1965France.

WILBUR L. MCBAY, Primary Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 18-12

